In July, Professor Deborah Zamble unexpectedly passed away following a brain hemorrhage. We are diminished as a Department because of her loss, and we continue to miss every aspect of our dear colleague as a scientist, teacher, and friend. Her husband, Brian Murray, captured many fond memories of Deborah in a recent edition of the The Globe and Mail.
Here is an excerpt:
"We got married in Kingston in 1999, though we were living in Boston. We had to take off our rings every time we crossed the border to meet the conditions on my work/study visa. We returned to the University of Toronto in 2001 where Deborah became a professor of chemistry and biochemistry."
"She was a world expert in the bioinorganic chemistry of nickel, studying how humans and microbes processed nickel so precisely to survive. Remarkably, her niche expertise in nickel had started in high school with a class project when she was 16. I found the report she had saved, and she did not save many sentimental things. She once shredded a Valentine I made her."
"Deborah set aside a lot of time to advise young women pursuing a career in science and worked with other female scientists to overcome barriers. Deborah volunteered for the Royal Canadian Institute for the Advancement of Science, and represented Canada proudly on the world stage."
You can read all of Brian Murray's "Lives Lived" here.